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KR: Is masturbation harmful? Why or why not? Is masturbation “natural”? |
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Written by Editor
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Dr. Eric: Harmful to what? Harmful to the environment? Nah. Harmful to others?
Probably not. Harmful to oneself? Ah, there lies the rub. (Okay so that
was a bad pun). Depending on the generation, children have been taught
all kinds of things about masturbation. Some have been told it will
make your hands hairy. Others have been warned if you do it too often
you’ll go blind. There is even the popular threat that every time
someone masturbates God kills a kitty (I’m not making this stuff up).
Now I’m not particularly a cat fan myself, but that last one is a
theological stretch for any serious student of the Bible.
Most scholars and Christian counselors today would agree that the Bible
is silent regarding masturbation. With that in mind we then must work
off a couple other Biblical parameters:
The first "parameter" in the Bible is Philippians 4:8:
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is
right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if
anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
In this Scripture, we have a boundary that deals with the mind and
thought life. One of the difficulties with masturbation in the minds of
many people is that it’s automatically assumed that sexual fantasies
must be used in order to gain the amount of stimulation needed for
orgasm to take place.
While it’s true that sexual fantasies can be used, there’s nothing
which suggests that they must be used. The choice is up to the
individual as to what they think about during masturbation. The body is
designed by God to respond to sexual stimulation, but it was never
designed to respond exclusively to impure thoughts. God has placed
within us a wide capacity for response to various stimuli. The point is
that a person does not have to fantasize when masturbating.
It’s no more necessary to fantasize about the images you saw on the
last episode of Baywatch (what are you doing watching Baywatch,
anyway?) during masturbation than it is to fantasize about driving a
Corvette while actually enjoying a Sunday drive in a minivan. Once
again, the point is that it is not necessary (nor is it healthy) to
view pornography while masturbating.
The viewing of pornography is actually detrimental to the experience,
since porn actually begins to create false expectations and reality in
the mind of the viewer. Besides porn in its various forms is clearly a
violation of the commandment not to lust after a person. Thus, such
activities introduce the element of sin into an experience that should
have been used for the glory of God.
As if that’s not enough, the Bible also tells us in 1 Corinthians
6:19-20, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy
Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not
your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your
body."
As I mentioned earlier, there seems to be no Scripture condemning the
act of masturbation as a sin. Solitary masturbation is not an act which
harms the individual’s body. In fact, the release of sexual tension can
promote the wellbeing of the body, and numerous women report that
masturbation actually curbs the pain often associated with menstrual
cramping. Nor does masturbation involve the joining of one body
and spirit to another, as is the case with sexual intercourse. Through
the releasing of sexual tensions, it can act as a barrier to seeking
release through immoral outlets. A part of honoring God with our bodies
is doing whatever’s necessary to keep our bodies under control—and in
the area of sexuality, masturbation can be an effective way of doing
so.
Yep, I’m sure my responses this week are gonna generate some feeback…
So how much is too much?
I think masturbation is ok if done in moderation ... The sin starts
when its done in excess or when it is combined with porn or other
objects that are clearly in violation of God’s standards for our lives.
“Excess” could mean that it is stealing away from your daily life by
utilizing a lot of your time. Of course the same could be said about my
X-box, Cable TV, or riding my motorcycle. For you that could be said
about other things, such as gossip, Internet, exercise, shopping, etc.
Defining "excessive" can be tricky. I hesitate to actually provide a
“normal” number of times per week that autoeroticism is okay. Let your
conscience be your guide. Still if you are finding yourself
masturbating more than 3 or 4 times a week, you might want to explore
some of the deeper reasons why your “drive” is so high.
Click HERE to discuss Dr. Eric's response in the KR: FORUM
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Dr. Eric Sandras |
Having received his PH.D. in Human Development and Family Relations from
Oregon State University , Eric Sandras is part of the next generation of
leaders whom God is using to "raise the bar" in the relationships, faith,
and life decisions of a postmodern generation. He is passionate about
family, emergent church issues, and having extra butter on his popcorn at
the movie theater.
Check out Eric's outstanding first book: Buck Naked Faith
Take off your designer, postmodern phoniness. Strip off your pretty sounding words. Get your faith naked.
Honest
and gritty, Eric Sandras encourages a generation of believers to drop
the layers of make-believe nonsense that stunts our spiritual growth.
What emerges is a positive alternative to life-crushing counterfeit
faiths many of us are trying our best to work through.
To do
this, there's no secret handshake or magic formula, but there is vision
and encouragement to take the risk and get dangerously real with God.
He exposes the naked truth: We need to dress our lives with a real
friendship with God and nothing else.
Buy 'Buck Naked Faith'
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